


The Deep End

by ZellaStone



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Case Fic, Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Dean Winchester Loves Castiel, Dean Winchester Needs to Use Actual Words, Domestic Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Relationship, M/M, POV Alternating, POV Sam Winchester, Sam Winchester Ships Castiel/Dean Winchester, Secret Relationship, Sharing a Bed, Team Free Will
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-14
Updated: 2020-01-17
Packaged: 2020-03-05 14:37:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18830680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZellaStone/pseuds/ZellaStone
Summary: Sam, Dean, and Cas head to Florida to investigate a series of deaths where the mutilated remains of the victims are appearing in a state park, leaving local authorities with only wildlife to blame.Sam might be in over his head - a mysterious (read: suspicious) woman keeps making an appearance at every turn, and each new clue to the case only raises more questions. And then there is Dean and Cas.Something is definitely going on between them.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello readers!
> 
> I've been working on this story for what feels like forever. Its almost complete, and I am planning to update at least weekly, so stay tuned!
> 
> Enjoy!

A slow breeze flows through the clear night sky, gently rustling the palm leaves as it passes through. The stars are out in full force tonight, and a nearly full moon reflects off of the park’s prized natural spring, causing the entire area to seemingly glow with an eerie radiance. During the daylight hours, you could easily see the bottom of the spring, where it gives way to deep underwater caves. The moonlight only penetrates so far however, leaving the depths of the spring a mystery to the casual observer. Wekiwa Springs State Park is a different place after dark - gone are the hordes of visitors, both local and tourists, who swim, play, and sun bathe, filling the area with noise. 

The night is cool by Florida’s standards, and a young woman, making her way towards the spring, pulls on a light jacket over her shorts and t-shirt as she exits her car. From the parking lot, she takes the path through a grassy knoll; she doesn’t pay any attention to the sign declaring the park closed at sunset as she passes by. She moves with a casual confidence, clearly familiar with her surroundings. Eyes to the sky, she inhales deeply, relishing in the peace and quiet, the beauty, of the park at night. 

Upon reaching her destination, she settles herself on a small rock outcropping at the edge of the spring and zones out for a short while, lost in her own thoughts, or perhaps just the tranquility of her surroundings. She slips off her sandals and dips her toes in the water, sitting contentedly until the sound of movement nearby catches her attention. 

The sound is coming from an area just outside of her view, the cracking of vegetation and the aggressive rustling of leaves a stark contrast to the silence of the night. The woman stands slowly, eyeing the area with apparent apprehension. As a local, she is probably well aware that Florida wild life could be serious trouble; it wasn’t unheard-of to come across a bear or even a panther in the deeper sections of the state parks. 

The animal that breaks through and trots onto the trail is easily the last thing she expected it to be. 

The horse is tall, lean, and solid black, so shiny that its skin almost looks wet as it ripples over well-defined muscles. In the moonlight, it almost looks otherworldly, far too beautiful and perfect of a specimen to be real, let alone out by itself in the middle of a state park at night. The animal seems to appraise the woman for a long moment as she stares at it in shock, her mouth hanging open slightly. Finally, it snorts, tossing its head and shaking out its flowing mane, pawing at the ground as it does so. 

Hesitantly the woman moves forward, speaking to the horse softly as she does so. The animal turns its full attention on her as she moves, staring intently with its ears perked. For a brief moment, it appears as though the beast’s eyes flash red, but it is gone in an instant, and the woman shakes her head, her thick auburn curls bouncing slightly. 

She reaches her hand towards the animal, and it walks forward to meet her half-way as she places her hand on its neck, unable to resist tangling her fingers into the silky mane. 

...

“So get this.”

Dean tosses his head back groans loudly. “Aw come on Sam we literally just finished one! Can’t we take a break for once?”

Sam rolls his eyes from where he is seated across from his brother and Cas, who was taking advantage of Dean’s distraction and swiping a few French fries from his plate. He can’t help but think that if it was him stealing food off of Dean’s plate, he would probably be missing a couple of fingers by now. “The liver and portions of the intestines belonging to one Janelle Miller were just found in a state park. No signs of the rest of the body anywhere, but it’s the second case. Rangers are blaming panthers.”

“Wait - panthers? Like - jungle cat panthers?” 

“Yep. Guess they’re not uncommon in Florida. Also I like how _that_ is the detail that sticks out to you.” Sam is typing away in his computer as he responds so he misses the smile his brother shoots at Cas. 

“Well hell if it’s in Florida we can make it double as a vacation. You in Cas?”

Cas steals another French fry and smiles at his friends. “Of course, Dean. Sounds like it might be our type of thing.” He actually winks at Dean as he delivers the last line, and Sam watches in amusement as his brother’s ears turn red and he quickly looks away, clearing his throat. He barely catches Dean’s words when he responds, but it sounds a lot like a grumbled -“I offered to get you your own damn fries you know.” Cas smirks slightly and reaches across Dean slightly to grab another fry, dragging it slowly through ketchup before lifting it to his mouth in a very dramatic slow motion, never taking his eyes from Dean's. 

Despite his best effort not to, Sam huffs out a small laugh. Dean’s soft spot for the angel was becoming more and more obvious every day. Like right now, they were sitting close together, far closer than really was necessary. Or even normal. Sam wondered idly if they even realized that was a thing they had started to do lately. It was becoming rare to find one without the other ever, and sure, the two of them bickered and argued half of the time, but other times... other times Sam would walk into a room and instantly feel that he was interrupting some deeply intimate and profound moment. 

Just that morning, he had walked into the kitchen and found Dean and Cas quietly side by side at the counter making coffee, both looking like they had just woken up. The scene was so soft and domestic that Sam had paused silently in the doorway, wide-eyed in his surprise. He watched as Dean sipped at his coffee before turning slightly to Cas, nudging their shoulders together gently, and murmuring something that Sam couldn't make out. Cas must get it though,because in response he had smiled through his short response and moved closer, leaning into Dean and resting his head on the other man's shoulder. Dean had returned the touch, pressing his mouth onto the top of Cas's head in a gesture of affection way too intimate for friendship, and Sam had taken that as his cue to quietly back away from the room.

And so, as Sam ponders his brother's developing relationship and what it all means, the domestic moment happening across the table from him dissolves into chaos as Dean lets out an indignant yell and Cas laughs, his eyes sparkling with mirth. He joins in the laughter for a moment, earning himself a glare from his brother, before Dean stands and thumps his fist against the table. 

"Alright, alright. You two are hilarious. Now we've got some freaky ass murder panthers from Florida to take care of, so let's hit the road."


	2. Chapter 2

The Sun Plaza motel was nestled into a lightly wooded corner lot, a long, curving gravel driveway leading up to the front office. It boasted a swimming pool and a large fire pit at the front of the property, and much of the space in between was lined with lightly cleared dirt walking paths that weaved in and out of the trees. A number of people filled the space, some slowly wandering through the trees, or lounging in a spot of shade, and still others splashing about in the pool. 

The lot was attractive, but it was the huge glaring neon sun on its cheery yellow sign, with the vacancy sign flickering blue underneath, that really attracted attention to the entire property. It was framed on all sides by trees much older and taller than it, yet its size and color demanded attention from the busy intersection that framed it. 

It was this sign that attracted Dean Winchester's attention as he slowed the impala to pull into the winding drive. "Sun Plaza Motel!" he reads out loud with enthusiasm. "This is gonna be great! See they've even got a pool!"

Sam laughs. "I'm glad you're excited Dean but don't forget why we're here."

"You're no fun." Dean parks and pulls the keys from the ignition before they all quickly climb out of the car and enjoy a quick stretch. "Damn that was a long drive, even for us."

Sam agrees before heading inside to get them a couple of rooms. 

.

The disinterested looking girl sitting at the front desk looks up at him as the bell on the door announces his entrance. "Ice machine is off to the side here." She nods her head slightly to the left before snapping her gum and returning her attention to the magazine on the counter. 

"Uh actually I'm here to check in. I need two rooms - a double and a single."

To his surprise she laughs as she stands and pushes her magazine to the side. "Buddy you got a reservation?"

"Uh no, but -"

"Well you're clearly not from around here then. Big horse show this weekend. All the hotels around for miles are booked. But you're actually in luck, I just had a cancellation this morning. I can give you one double room." She pulls the last set of keys from a hook on the wall behind her and slams it onto the counter with a smile. "I'd recommend you take it, probably nearest vacancy otherwise will be a good... ehh hundred miles or so away."

Sam cringes and pays for the room. He still wasn't sure of the status of Dean and Cas's relationship, and hoped his brother wouldn't make a big deal about sharing a bed. This would be interesting, if nothing else. 

.

"...its just that here seems to be an unusually large number of people here...compared to other places we stay." 

Sam holds up the single set of room keys as he catches the end of Cas's statement. He and Dean are leaning against the impala's front fender watching the people move about the motel property. "Clerk said there's a big horse show this weekend, all the hotels in the area are booked up. Luckily we got the last room here. Its a double at least."

Cas suddenly looks nervous, his eyes flitting first over to Dean and then fixating on the ground a few inches in front of his shoes. Dean, to his credit, looks only mildly flustered for a second before snapping into action and gathering their bags. "Well, lead the way. I'm starved and we have a coroner to visit."

Sam unlocks the door to motel room number 13, scowling at the irony of it. Everything in the room is solid white with curved edges, but otherwise it is a fairly standard fair motel room. The two beds take up the majority of the space, and a small table with two chairs is crowded against the opposite wall. He tosses his bag unceremoniously onto one of the beds before sitting next to it and pulling out his computer to look up details about the case. 

Dean lets out a low whistle as he looks around the room. "Damn, no couch either, looks like we're bunking up then." He tosses his stuff the other bed and looks at Cas briefly before busying himself by opening up his bag and digging around. "Dibs on not sharing with Sam. Dude's the worst to try to sleep next to. He kicked the shit outta me last time we bunked up, so yeah. No thanks."

Sam rolls his eyes. "Whatever Dean you're so dramatic."

Cas stares at Dean with wide eyes for a moment before slowly nodding. "Yes, that sounds unpleasant. Perhaps it would be best to leave Sam to a bed by himself." He slowly places his bag next to Dean's on the bed, as if afraid to make any sudden movements. Did they think they were being subtle? Sam wills himself not to roll his eyes “Well you won't hear me complaining. ”

Dean turns towards his brother and claps his hands together. "Right. So demon panthers?" He sits at the edge of the bed facing Sam, and pats the spot beside him. When Cas is seated (much closer than necessary, shoulder and leg pressed against Dean's. _"Typical"_ Sam thinks.) Dean motions for him to fill them in. Sam smirks slightly at the scene; A few years ago Dean would hark on and on at Cas about personal space. But here and now, Dean wasn't bothered, he was however staring at Sam expectantly, so Sam shakes off his thoughts.

Sam leans forward, down to business and happily in his element now, turning his laptop to share the screen. "There's not a whole lot about it in the papers, just that remains were found and that they were identified by a DNA test compared to a few local missing people. Uh, park rangers warning people to stay away from the woods after dark. They can't find the rest of either body - there have been two, don't know if I mentioned that - they even swept the whole area with dogs. And nothing."

Cas frowns, moving himself away from Dean as he pulls the laptop away from Sam and begins scrolling through the police reports. "It is strange that the only remains found from both the victims were the liver and a few bits of intestines." He turns then to face Dean and says, very solemnly, "I hate to be the one to inform you Dean, but this doesn't sound like Panthers."

Dean laughs, clapping his arm heavily onto Cas's shoulder as he does. "Well of course not _regular_ Panthers Cas. They're like from...space maybe." He reaches his palm out in an arch in front of them. "Killer panthers from space - they don't like liver but hey who does!" He looks around the room, grinning expectantly.

Sam groans, and Cas rolls his eyes, but they both laugh anyway. 

"But seriously" Dean says as he stands up, "we need somewhere to start. So let's go check out where the bodies were found."


	3. Chapter 3

The three men arrive at Wekiwa Springs State Park and flash their FBI badges at the park ranger on duty, who introduces himself as Steve Collins. He doesn't have any new information for them, but they exchange contact information anyway. He informs them that the park is closed, but given their credentials, he makes the exception and points them down paths across a small grassy area, to the edge of a spring. The spots where the remains were found are still roped off.

The afternoon sun is warm, but a cool breeze blows over the water, making the temperature pleasant. The police tape flaps lightly in the breeze, and if it weren't for its presence, it would be hard to imagine that anything violent happened here. Sam frowns, squinting into the sun as he makes his way over to one of the marked areas. Dean and Cas fan out and the three of them give the entire area a thorough search. 

When they come back together after about an hour, all three of them are discouraged and empty-handed. "Well back to the drawing board I guess" Sam says through a sigh as they begin to walk towards the car.

Cas squints at him "I didn't know we had a drawing board." Sam opens his mouth to explain, but Dean is already talking, and Cas's serious face is already cracking into a grin. "-it's an _expression_ Cas." Dean is so exasperated that he misses the joke, which seems to amuse Cas even further.

A sudden movement nearby catches Sam's attention, and he grabs Dean's arm and points. Dean snaps his mouth shut and all three of them turn to watch as a woman emerges from one of the trails a short distance away. She is dressed in jeans and a thin black t shirt, with a light colored plaid flannel tied carelessly around her waist. She's carrying a small backpack, which Sam almost doesn't notice due to the mountain of flaming red hair that cascades from under a ball cap into a low ponytail over one shoulder. She doesn't notice them and begins to walk slowly along the shore. She stops at a point partway in between the two roped off sections and stares out into the water.

"Well thats not suspicious" Dean whispers. He exchanges a glance with his brother and they approach the water. The girl turns at the sound of their footsteps and looks at them in surprise. "Parks' closed, didn't see the sign?" Dean asks.

She raises an eyebrow at them in surprise and calmly replies "and yet you are here as well." She has the slightest hint of what was perhaps a Scottish accent. 

Dean flashes his FBI badge at her and smiles. "There's my excuse sweetheart, what's yours?"

The girl suddenly looks nervous, as the other two follow suit. Sam doesn't miss the frown that Cas shoots in Dean's direction, but there's no time to dwell on it now. "Whoa, I hadn't heard the FBI was getting involved."

Cas steps forward slightly with a raised eyebrow. "So you are following the case closely?" She sputters, looking flustered for a moment before she raises her hands defensively. "L-look. I live nearby, I'm just out for a walk. I come out here all the time, so of course I'm following it." She looks at them with wide eyes "can I ask - do you have any leads yet?"

Sam steps in, answering smoothly, "We can't share any details of the investigation at this time, but we'll have a few questions for you now if you have a moment."

She looks nervous again, but nods in agreement. They learn that her name is Lara Mason, and that she does indeed leave at a nearby ranch where she raises and trains champion horses. She seems slightly distressed at the mention of the upcoming horse shoe that had all the local hotels booked up, but waves off Dean's observation of this as pre-show jitters. Otherwise, she seems to have no connection with any of the victims, so they part with an exchange of information and tell her to contact them if anything comes up. "The park is closed for a reason. It's not safe out here until we get this thing figured out, so I wouldn't make a habit of hanging around here" Sam warns her.

Once they have all returned to the impala, Dean looks around at his companions. "So please tell me we all agree that she is suspicious?" Cas agrees but Sam hesitates. "I mean being freaked out by the supposed FBI interrogating her in the middle of an afternoon hike doesn't automatically make her guilty of anything. But I agree we should keep her on our radar." Dean frowns but shifts the car into gear. They could discuss this further over food. 

.

A short while later they are all crowded into a small booth at a local Chinese buffet. Dean is stuffing his face with Lo Mein when Sam brings up that they haven't been to the coroners yet. "Whats the point?" Dean asks around a mouthful of noodles. Sam winces at his brother's terrible manners, but Dean at least holds up a finger as he swallows before continuing. "I mean there won't be much to see. A perfectly intact liver and some guts." Dean pauses and stares at the noodles with a wrinkled nose for a moment before shrugging and digging back in. Cas sighs in defeat and pushes his own noodles away, glancing at Dean in disgust. 

Sam shoots him a sympathetic glance before replying. "I know but maybe they overlooked something. You know this would be a lot easier if we could figure out what happened to the rest of the body."

Dean nods seriously, tapping his fingers on the table thoughtfully. "We need to find those bodies. I guess we go interview families tomorrow morning. Try to find a link." They sit in contemplative silence for a moment before Dean continues "I hate to say it but this whole thing is starting to sound kind of witchy to me." 

Sam nods gloomily, but Cas jerks forward grabbing at Dean's arm saying excitedly "Dean you're a genius!" Dean flushes slightly and turns to his friend in surprise. "Wha? Well I mean, yeah sure, but uh why?"

Cas turns include Sam in the discussion, smiling wide. "I have a plan."


	4. Chapter 4

The plan was simple, but brilliant. It was after midnight, and Sam was currently sitting in the impala working to hack into the security system at the county coroner's office. Dean was just up the street on foot, preparing to break in at his signal. For the Winchesters a heist like this would be simple. Once the cameras and alarms were shut off, Dean would be able to stroll right on in, grab the most recent victim's liver, and bring it right out to the car. Easy. 

Sam hits a few more buttons and the last camera sets up on the loop he had been working on for it. He smiles in satisfaction and sends a text to Dean. _GO_ He carefully scans the nearby area for any sign of movement, but sees nothing until Dean approaches several minutes later. 

"Got it?" He asks as his brother opens the door and settles into the passenger seat. "Yep." Dean pulls a plastic ziploc bag with a disgusting blob of flesh settled in the bottom of it from inside his jacket and looks at it and then his brother in disgust. "The things I do for this job man." Sam laughs. "Yeah tell me about it."

They drive back to the Sun Plaza Motel, whose sign was now lit up, a glaring yellow sun in the otherwise dark section of town. Its light casts eerie shadows among the trees here as Sam slowly steers up the gravel drive (he wasn't about to have Dean bitching at him for driving through the gravel to quickly). "This place looked a lot friendlier during the day." He commented mildly to Dean, who just shrugged in response. "They always do, don't they?"

Sam pulled into the space for number thirteen, and they both climbed out and headed to the room. Inside, Cas was already setting up the other components to the spell. Dean unceremoniously holds the bagged liver out to him and Cas shoots him a smile before accepting it. He makes the finishing touches to the tracking spell, adding a portion of the liver, before looking up at the brothers. "Are you ready?" At their nod, he strikes a match, drops it into the bowl and begins to chant.  
...

Sam and Dean follow closely behind as Cas leads them down the trails back towards the spring where they had been earlier that day. It is very late now and the moon and stars hang brightly overhead in a cloudless sky, providing enough light to see by, even without the aid of their flashlights. It is quiet for the woods at night, the only real sound being the occasional movement of water against the rocky sections of shore. 

He leads them to the nearest edge of the spring, and pauses with his eyes closed, face tilted slightly to the sky, focusing in on the spell. As he stands there, encased in moonlight, the wind blows lightly, rustling his hair, and Sam watches as his brother stares at him in awe. He turns away after a moment, shaking his head slightly, because _seriously_ Dean was either in denial or he really was oblivious to his own feelings. 

Dean fidgets beside Cas, swinging his flashlight beam impatiently around the area one more time, before Cas starts walking again, waving at them to follow. "The signal is coming from nearby, but it is weak. I suspect that whatever remains of the body is not fully...intact."

Sam and Dean exchange a look as they follow him around to the opposite shore where he again stops with a frown, staring now into the depths of the spring. Cas hesitates uncertainly before turning to his companions. “I think...I believe that the spell is indicating that what remains of the body is deep under water. Springs like this often have cave systems. We may be off base with the witch theory, perhaps we are looking for something...aquatic ”

Dean huffs. “Well that's just -” A twig snaps nearby, silencing them all immediately. Sam swings his light in the direction of the disturbance as Dean draws his gun and steps in front of Cas. "We know you're there, so you might as well just come on out now."

After a tense moment of silence, the woman from earlier slowly steps out from the brush at the edge of the trail with her hands raised above her head. In her left hand, she is holding what appears to be a horse's bridle and a length of rope. She stares at them with wide eyes. "Sorry, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, I swear. But...I... did you say you think a _witch_ is murdering these people?"

Sam and Dean exchange a long look, but before either of them can respond, Cas supplies an answer. "Well that was the original theory, but we're still investigating."

Sam shoots him an exasperated look and speaks up. "Look, we kind of...specialize in strange cases like this -"

"Witches, ghosts, demons, you name it we've seen it. But we should be the ones asking questions here." Dean completely bulldozes over Sam's attempts to calm the girl, whose eyes have been growing steadily wider by the moment. "What the hell are you doing out here _again?_ You get that that is suspicious right? Hanging around a murder scene in the middle of the night?"

Lara hesitates, her eyes skipping between the men in front of her and briefly flickering over the water for a moment before she makes her reply. "Had a horse get loose," she replies, lifting up the bridle and lead as if it were evidence, "was afraid it would come this way and get attacked by the... well the reports said it was probably a panther. But actually my friend texted me right before I came across you guys and said she got him, so I was just about to head back."

 _"Not suspicious at all"_ Sam thinks. A quick glance at his companions' faces told him they were having similar amounts of disbelief. 

Cas speaks first, nodding his head slowly, even while he squints his eyes at her in obvious suspicion. "Of course," he says, "well I am happy to know that the horse is safe."

"Yeah, thanks. I should probably get back and help tend to him. Sorry to have interrupted you." She is already backing away from them as she speaks, jerking her thumb over her shoulder as she goes. 

"Wait a minute!" Sam calls out to her. Despite his suspicions about the too convenient timing of the whole situation, he isn't about to just let her walk away into the woods at night with some type of murderous monster on the loose. "Let us give you a ride home, it's still dangerous out here." Dean makes an incredulous noise, but is quickly silenced when Cas gives him an abrupt elbow to the ribcage. 

Lara looks unsure as she glances at the men in front of her, but then she nods and hurredly shoves the bridle into her backpack. "Ok, yes, that would be great actually. It's only a couple minutes away so it's not bad to walk it. But since you were talking about witches and ghosts, I guess I'm maybe a little bit more afraid than I was before." She offers them a hesitant smile before following them to the impala. 

...

By the time Dean parks the impala in the motel parking lot, it is nearly 3am, and they have more questions than they do answers. The three men pile into the room, and Dean immediately collapses face first onto his bed. "Lets push all this research off until after breakfast, yeah? I'm beat."

Sam stifles a yawn and mumbles his agreement, quickly changing and slipping under the covers of the second bed. Cas follows suit, but not before successfully badgering Dean into getting up to change his clothes. Sam lays there with his eyes closed, not really trying to listen in, but picking up bits of their quiet conversation anyway. 

"I don't care Dean, you are not sleeping with me in this bed wearing jeans." Cas whispers this loudly, irritation clear in his voice. Dean shushes him but the rest of his reply was lost on Sam. There was silence for a long moment before he heard his brother sigh out _"Fine"_ and begin shuffling around, his jeans and flannel hitting the floor shortly after. The last thing Sam thinks before drifting off to sleep, is that he really should have a conversation with his brother sometime soon. 

...

Sunlight filters into the hotel room from around the edges of the window, slowly bringing Sam into consciousness. He stretches his arms above his head, and decides he might as well get up and have a quick run this morning. He quietly sits up, glancing over at the other bed to confirm if his companions were still asleep. "Oh no way!" He whispers excitedly to himself as he quickly grabs his phone and snaps a picture. 

The two are impossibly tangled together, Cas curled into Dean's side, practically on top of him, with his face pressed against his neck. Dean was turned slightly towards him, his arms encompassing the former angel completely, while his nose was buried into the hair at his temple. They were both snoring softly, looking completely at peace. Sam smiles, pocketing his blackmail, and quietly sneaks out. 

He starts off at a steady jog around the perimeter of the motel property, and follows the walking paths that weave about the property. There are few other people out this early, and he enjoys the quiet of the morning. His thoughts wander, starting at the strange details of this case - he was going to have to dig into some serious research here soon - and eventually moving to Dean and Cas. He is contemplating the benefit versus risk of trying to talk to Dean about it, when he gets the call.

...

Sam opens the door to their room, and immediately makes eye contact with his brother. Though Dean is now awake, he and Cas have not moved, and Cas is still snoring lightly against him. Dean flushes a violent shade of red, but shrugs his free shoulder and tries to look nonchalant, slowly relaxing back into Cas. Sam pauses for a moment, smirking lightly at his brother, before shaking himself. "You guys look really cozy and all, but I just got a call from Steve Collins." At Dean's blank stare he adds "the park ranger from yesterday? They've got another body."

"Damn it." Dean sighs, rubbing a hand down his face, before turning and gently shaking Cas. "Come on sunshine, we gotta get up." Cas grumbles in protest, burrowing in closer instead. If at all possible, Dean looks even more embarrassed. He glances towards Sam out of the corner of his eye and, turning in close to Cas again whispers intensely, "Sam is here and we need to go." 

"Oh, uh, sorry. I didn't mean to... uh..." Cas slowly pulls himself away as he attempts to mumble out an excuse, his eyes darting between Dean and Sam anxiously as he speaks. Sam tosses him a small smile and excuses himself for the shower, struggling to avoid the temptation to eavesdrop. 

In the end, he fails a bit, and finds himself lingering with the bathroom door open while getting his things around as Cas and Dean whisper to each other across the room.

"Dean, I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"No man, its okay, no big deal."

"But I know you didn't want him -"

 _"CAS."_ Dean hisses, and looks over towards the bathroom door then, where Sam is determinedly sorting through a small bag of toiletries, by all appearances oblivious to the conversation. "Just - later ok, we gotta go look for a body right now." 

_"Well that's interesting"_ Sam thinks as he lets the door snap shut. So yes, there was for sure something going on between Dean and Cas. Sam wonders when it started to change, because now that he looks back, this feels like a long time coming.


	5. Chapter 5

Upon arrival at the scene they are promptly greeted by Ranger Collins, who leads them up the trail towards the spring. “Had some unauthorized hikers up in the area this morning that called it in” he explains as he guides them. “Same as the last two, but this one has some signs of a struggle. Looks like whatever it was, was big ”

As he finishes catching them up they arrive at the remains of the most recent victim. The scene before them is grisly, even by Winchester standards. The three hunters exchange a disgusted look as they approach to inspect more closely. 

The cheery late-morning sun is out of place, shiny brightly on the crimson stained ground in front of them. The ground at this section of the shoreline was mostly stone, with a light dusty covering of gravel. The small amounts of vegetation breaking through the ground here were all morbidly stained in blood, the color growing thicker towards the center, where there sits a small pile of entrails, only a few feet away from the edge of the water. It is apparent that once again, the liver is present, and the rest however, is indistinguishable. 

Sam clears his throat after a moment and turns back to Collins. "So this hiker that called it in, have you spoken to them?"

"Yeah, we already turned her loose, poor thing was real shaken up. Said she's been so busy getting ready for the upcoming horse show, she hasn't checked the news. Had no idea this was even going on! In fact, she called the ranger station, and not 911, thought it was just some animal remains."

Sam thanks him, but as he is about to excuse them to continue searching the surrounding area, Dean interrupts. "You get a name?"

Collins flips through his notes for a moment before producing the information. "Uhhh....Miss Lara Mason."

The three hunters exchange a knowing glance, eyebrows raised, before thanking the ranger and moving to check the area. 

"Call me crazy, but I'm starting to think that this Lara is up to something." Dean says as soon as they are out of earshot.

"Yeah, we're definitely looking into her when we get back. She just keeps popping up. _Especially_ after how shady she was acting last night."

Cas nods in agreement as he circles around the edge of the bloodstain to move more towards the water. The stony terrain here made it difficult to tell exactly what had happened, but the amount of blood meant this probably was also the kill sight. "Yes. It is also suspicious that she lied to Ranger Collins when reporting this incident."

Both brothers stop and turn fully towards him. "What?"

Cas raises an eyebrow and looks at them expectantly for a moment before giving his reply. "Yesterday when we spoke to her here, she told us that she was following the case closely. She told the park ranger that she did not even know about it." 

"Yeah," Sam replies, nodding, eyes widening slightly "You're right, she did." He follows Cas to circle the remains while his mind begins to work. What did that mean though? Pehraps Lara really was a witch of some sort. That didn't exactly add up either. What would a witch be doing just abandoning livers on the bank of a spring? Surely any witch worth her salt would clean up after herself. Besides, Sam couldn't think of any ritual or spell that would result in such a thing. He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. This was going to require some deep research.

"- Yeah, I mean, that could be nothing though. She thinks the FBI warned her to stay away just yesterday, probably didn't want to get in trouble." Dean is arguing with Cas. 

"Which is still suspicious, why come out here today if she was worried about that? And why report your own crime? That doesn't make any sense." 

“Well,” Sam says, frowning, deep in thought, “maybe she's not the killer. But maybe she knows who - or what - is.”

They all exchange a significant look, before turning back to investigate the scene. Behind the gore, all the way to the water's edge, there were long streaks where the gravel was disturbed. It looks chaotic at first, but levels out into two prominent streaks leading into the water. It gave the impression of someone digging in their heels as they were drug away. Sam allows his eyes to follow the trail all the way to the spring. It was apparent that the victim was taken forcibly into the water. Ranger Collins was right, whatever did this was big. 

They walk in contemplative silence back to the car, each racking their brains for a potential solution. Sam decides the first thing that he is looking into is Lara Mason. She's the only solid lead they have right now. She had to know something.

“Right” Dean speaks up as they approach the parking lot “so something that lives in water and likes to leave us gross gifts of liver on the shore.” He pauses for a moment to consider his own statement before continuing “You're _sure_ we aren't looking for a cat here? Aqua panthers?”

Cas frowns and regards Dean seriously. “Dean, everyone knows that cats dislike water.”

Dean laughs out loud and slaps Cas on the shoulder. "Man, don't ever change." 

Sam huffs out a small laugh. “Right, well, let's go dig into some lore and see what we can find.” 

...

Lara fidgets in her car, anxiously awaiting her opportunity. Calling the body (or lack thereof) in this morning had definitely been a risk, but she needed to know more about these supposed FBI agents. They had all but confirmed her greatest fear when she had spoken to them the night before. They were hunters. 

The logical part of her brain screamed at her to confide in them, allow them to help her. But, there was another part, a stubborn, hopeful, maybe even selfish part of her, that knew she had to do whatever it would take to slow them down. 

She _had_ to buy herself some more time if she was going to fix this. She had been so close the other day... if only those hunters would leave the scene alone for just a couple more days she was sure she could get this situation under control. She sighs, exhaustion and stress threatening to overwhelm her. _"I'm in way over my head here"_ she thinks. 

She waits, her car well concealed from view, until she sees the sleek black car from the nigh before arrive. A short while later, when it exits the park's main lot, she steadies herself with a deep breath and shifts her car into drive.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, guys the past few months have been _insane._
> 
> So first of all, I want to apologize for the HUGE delay to anyone who is still following this. Life happens, and I just made a fairly sudden and dramatic move for a new job, and well, got super busy dealing with that, and starting the new job and bla bla bla. But I didn't forget! I always promised myself that if I was going to start writing I wouldn't be one of those people to abandon a project part way through, and I plan to stick to that. 
> 
> That being said, I'm nicely settled in now, and will be resuming regular updates. :)
> 
> Enjoy!

Back at the motel room, Sam immediately spreads his things out on the small table and gets to work. By the time Dean and Cas have agreed to order a pizza for lunch, he has found Lara's Facebook page. 

By all appearances, she was a pretty normal girl, who just so happened to _really_ like horses. The stable she owned had tons of awards and her page was littered with photos of prized horses displayed with ribbons and trophies. Just two weeks ago, she had actually flown to Scotland to bring a horse back with her. The beast was certainly impressive, boasting a beautiful shining black coat and massive size. It appeared that Lara was hoping to win big at the upcoming horse show with him. The photos of this horse were the last things posted to her page, which had been devoid of activity for about a week.

Since about the time the first body was found actually. 

"It might be nothing," he says, causing the other two to look up from their intense debate over pizza toppings, "but her social media pages went dark right before the first body dropped."

Dean moves to look over Sam's shoulder, skimming over the page quickly. "Yeah, I guess. Doesn't tell us anything new though." 

"I think we all agree that she is probably involved, it's just a matter of figuring out how. Perhaps one of us should try to follow her and see what we can figure out?" Cas spoke up as he moves over to also look at Sam's screen.

Dean quickly turns to Cas, looking irritated. "Nope, no way. No one is going off alone until we have an idea of what we are dealing with here."

Sam sighs, rubbing between his eyes, as he braces himself for an argument to break out between the two of them. Dean's over protectiveness was a constant point of conflict, especially since Cas was basically human these days. But after a moment of silence he looks back to find Dean scowling at Cas, but Cas was completely ignoring him, his eyes fixed on the screen still. 

"Very well," he said after a moment, "I have a couple of ideas to check out in the meantime." He then grabs the other computer and situates himself against the headboard of his and Dean's bed, and busies himself with research. 

Dean scoffs and picks up the phone to order the previously discussed pizza, before grabbing Sam's unused tablet and settling in next to Cas on the bed. 

 _Right_ next to him. Couldn't possibly get any closer if he needed to.

Sam resists rolling his eyes at the two of them, and focuses in on researching what kind of creature could be living in a Florida spring.   
...

About an hour later, as they were digging into the pizza, Cas speaks up. 

"I think I know what we are dealing with, have either of you ever heard of the _Each Uisge_?"

Sam frowns and shakes his head slowly. "Doesn't sound familiar, no."

Dean was also shaking his head. "Nope, so what the hell is a.. _ack ooo_...what?"

Cas shoots him a fond smile before diving into the explanation. " _Each Uisge_ " he repeated. "Perhaps you have heard of kelpies?"

Sam's eyes widen in realization as the pieces clicked together. Lara, and her horses. The water. "Oh man! Lara knows exactly what is going on! She brought it here!" 

Dean clears his throat, looking in between the two. "Uh, anyone care to share with the class?" He takes another bite of pizza and turns his attention back to Cas as he explains. 

The _Each Uisge_ , while not exactly a kelpie, is very similar, though unfortunately it is said to be significantly more aggressive. They can take several forms, but one of the most common is that of a horse. They lure their victims in with their stunning beauty, but once they make contact, the skin becomes adhesive and the person cannot pull away. Then they simply drown them and devour the remains." Cas pauses and looks between the brothers. "They are known for leaving behind the liver." 

Dean lets out a low whistle. "Damn that's pretty on the nose." 

Cas nods. "I hadn't thought of it before because they are typically only found in Scotland, but as Sam already said, it looks like Lara brought a horse back form there just prior to the first of the killings." 

Sam begins madly typing at his computer, as Dean pulls the other one from Cas's lap and starts to do the same. 

"OK," Sam said a moment later, pausing to run his hand through his hair. "Seems like they only remain dangerous when in contact with water. And here we go - get this - there is supposedly a magical bridle that you can use to capture them."  

Dean looked up and nodded slowly. "So this crazy chick, got her hands on a magic bridle, flew to Scotland, caught a man eating monster horse, and then flew it back to Florida? Why the hell would anyone do that." 

"To win the horse show I guess." Sam had to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. "Says here they can be up to ten times stronger and faster than a real horse."  

"And, if you recall, when we bumped into Lara the second time she was carrying a rope and bridle and claimed to be looking for a lost horse." Cas adds. 

Dean grins, quickly snapping his laptop shut. "Well good news, I guess. All it takes to kill it is a silver bullet. Easy peasy." 

"Great, then all we have to do then is catch it out of the water." Sam stands up and looks between his companions. "I'll grab the bullets from the Impala and we can get prepped." 

Sam steps outside, letting the door snap shut behind him. The night is incredibly still and muggy, but at least the sky is clear. Hopefully it would stay clear throughout the night and make this hunt even easier than it already sounded.  

As he approaches the car his heart sinks. _"No way."_ He whispers as he lets out a disbelieving breath. All four of the impala's tires were flat. Dean was going to freak out. Frustrated, he runs his hand through his hair and looks around the parking lot. There was no sign of anyone suspicious, but his eyes land on a security camera at the corner of the building. 

_"Shit."_ Well, at least he could probably figure out who did this, although he had a pretty strong suspicion based on recent revelations. _"Better break it to Dean I guess,"_ he thought begrudgingly as he returned to the motel room.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of us that feel like Dean at these moments, Each Uisge is pronounced ACH OOSHKA :)


End file.
